User:Cullen328/Sandbox/Edit conflict

An edit conflict is a computer software problem on Wikipedia and other wikis. An edit conflict occurs when a shared document is being edited by more than one person at the same time and a conflict is generated. One person attempts to edit the document, but upon trying to save the new version, another person has already modified the document in the intervening time period, thus causing a difference between the attempted edit and the already-made edit that must be resolved manually. According to computer writer Gary B. Shelly, "many wikis will block the contributor who is attempting to edit the page from being able to do so until the contributor currently editing the page saves changes or remains idle on the page for an extended period of time."

The problem is common when working on heavily-edited articles on Wikipedia, such as those about a "current event" or a "person suddenly in the news", or on other "high traffic pages".

The same issue can arise when two or more editors are working on Google Sites.